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The doctor who Dan Gilbert credits with saving his life after he had a severe stroke in 2019, is headed to federal prison for 3 1/2 years for health care fraud, Crain's Detroit Business reports. He's also on the hook for $1.2 million in restitution.
Authorties charged that Dr. Steven Adamczyk, 47, of Bloomfield Hills, submitted more than $3.4 million in false billings and "exploited some of the most vulnerable members of society in Detroit" by requiring opioid-addicted patients to receive medically unnecessary and painful facet joint injections in order to get the drugs.
He was one of 16 Michigan and Ohio-area defendants, including 12 physicians, who were sentenced to prison for a $250 million health care fraud scheme. He is set to report to prison April 4.
In a sentencing memorandum filed last October, federal prosecutors noted that the doctor could have come forward and pleaded guilty much sooner than he did.
"While defendant ultimately did accept responsibility after he hired his current counsel (his third set of defense attorneys) and cooperate, the cooperation unfortunately was less fruitful than it would have been if defendant had accepted responsibility earlier."
Gilbert last fall wrote a character letter to U.S. District Judge Denise Page Hood on behalf of the doctor, who he met when Adamczyk coached his son's basketball team in 2016.
"On May 25, 2019, while hosting an event on the roof of my residence in downtown Detroit, I began seeing double," Gilbert's one-page letter said. "Believing that this issue had something to do with the lights used on the roof, I thought nothing of it. When I mentioned my double vision to Steve, he immediately insisted I go to the hospital."
"I resisted and told Steve I did not need to go anywhere. I was adamant, but so was Steve. Due to Steve's persistance, I reluctantly agreed to be taken to the hospital, with Steve accompanying me. While at the hospital I received medical treatment for a stroke. Had I not gone to the hospital as Steve persistently insisted, I do not think I would be alive today."
He added: "His dedication, care, compassion and professionalism on a daily basis has been instrumental in my recovery process, and he has made a difference in the quality of my life."
